Boilerplate City

Eighteen years ago, Boilerplate City was one of the greatest cities in the world. A tough, no-nonsense industrial metropolis named after the heavy steel plating that once defined its manufacturing roots, Boilerplate had transformed into a hyper-modern city of unimaginable scale. Massive glass skyscrapers pierced the clouds, multi-level highways twisted between towering buildings, enormous digital billboards illuminated the streets, and an extensive subway network carried millions of people through the city day and night. Finance, technology conglomerates, entertainment, and luxury tourism had turned Boilerplate into a global powerhouse. Then came the Psychopomp Explosion. Without warning, an unknown catastrophic blast erupted at the heart of the city. At the center of the explosion, temperatures reached millions of degrees. Asphalt streets melted into bubbling black glass. Buildings were instantly vaporized. Entire city blocks disappeared within seconds, leaving nothing behind but debris, fire, and a permanent scar across the landscape. Millions of lives were lost. Boilerplate City the bustling metropolis where millions of citizens once lived was effectively wiped off the map. Only a small number of people survived. Among them were two newborn boys: Obadiah and Vikas. Their parents were killed during the Psychopomp Explosion, leaving the two boys orphaned on the same night. Despite having lost everything, Obadiah and Vikas grew up together and became inseparable. They had been friends since birth. But neither of them knew the truth about what happened that night. Unknown to everyone, both Obadiah and Vikas had survived because something extraordinary had awakened within them: a mysterious form of Stored Potential Energy.